The American Farrier’s Association (AFA) is pleased to announce that the 2014 American Farrier’s Team(AFT) has been in England for several days preparing for the International Team Horseshoeing Championships which will get underway at Stoneleigh Park on Saturday, September 27th.
Farriers competing for horseshoeing championships
The American Farrier’s Association is pleased to announce that the 2014 American Farrier’s Team is in England preparing for the International Team Horseshoeing Championships which get underway at Stoneleigh Park on Saturday, September 27th.
Only one team per country is permitted entry to these prestigious championships hosted by the British Farriers and Blacksmiths Association (BFBA). The US team has historically been selected from Certified Journeyman Farriers of the American Farrier’s Association.
This year’s team is managed by past multiple time AFT competitor, Conrad Trow, CJF, and is comprised of the following members:
- Jake Engler, CJF, Magnolia, Texas
- Josh Stanley, CJF,AWCF, Bozeman, Montana
- Rusty Wells, CJF, Earlysville, Virginia
- Ben Mangan, CJF, Carthage, New York
- Robbie Mederos, CJF,FE (alternate) Danville, California
Team members are chosen each year through a rigorous selection process based on points earned at the North American Forging and Horse Shoeing Competition held in conjunction with the American Farrier’s Association annual convention.
In 2015, this selection will take place during the AFA convention in Overland Park, Kansas between February 25-27. In the months following convention and leading up to the competition, team members regularly serve as informal Ambassadors of the AFA as they travel around the United States and participate in numerous practices which are open to the public as an educational forum.
The two days of competition are intense and exciting as competitors vie to complete specific shoeing assignments accurately and within an allotted period of time. AFT competitors face the additional challenge of working with a coke forge rather than propane fired as customarily utilized by farriers in the US.
Nevertheless, past AFT members are quick to praise the opportunity to represent the US abroad and to compete against farriers who are widely recognized as some of the best in the world.
To learn more about the American Farrier’s Association or their annual convention visit www.americanfarriers.org or call the AFA office: (859)233-7411.